In my opinion the world is a better place because Desmond Tutu lived and a poorer place as result of his death at 90.
He was born into a very poor African family in 1931.
He wA ordained a priest in 1961 and moved to England to study theology at King’s College, London.
He went on to teach theology in both a seminary and a University.
In 1975 he became the Dean of St Mary’s Carhedral in Johannesburg.
He was consecrated Bishop of Lesotho in 1978 and remained there until 1985.
He was a most prominent of apartheid and always stressed the need for non violence.
In 1985 he became the Bishop of Johannesburg and in 1986 the Archbishop of Cape Town.
He oversaw the introduction of women’s ordination.
After Nelson Mandela was released from prison he and Tutu worked together for multi race democracy in South Africa.
Later Mandela chose Tutu to be chair of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission.
When apartheid fell Tutu campaigned for gay rights.
Tutu spoke out on a wide range of subjects, among the Israeli Palestinian conflict, his opposition to the Iraq Was and his criticism of South African presidents Thabo Mbeki and Jacob Zuma.
In 2010, he retired from public life.
Tutu polarised opinion as he rose to prominence in the 1970s. White conservatives who supported apartheid despised him, while many white liberals regarded him as too radical; many black radicals accused him of being too moderate and focused on cultivating white goodwill.
Marxist Leninists criticised his anti communist stance. He was widely popular among South Africa’s black majority, and was internationally praised for his anti-apartheid activism, receiving a range of awards, including the Nobel Peace Price. He also compiled several books of his speeches and sermons.
Tutu was a prophet who spoke out for the vulnerable and suffering.
He deserved his long life.
And he deserves admiration and praise and a place in Paradise.
A prophet is not a seer into the future.
A prophet is one who speaks the truth (sometimes God’s truth) to power.
“If you are neutral in situations of injustice, you have chosen the side of the oppressor. If an elephant has its foot on the tail of a mouse and you say that you are neutral, the mouse will not appreciate your neutrality.”
Archbishop Desmond Tutu, 1931-2021
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++!
BISHOP PAT BUCKLEY 